|
| Mikel Blair doesn’t think she can reopen her indoor playground until 2021. PHOTO: KATE CAHILL |
|
|
Planning for 2021?: Happy Memorial Day Weekend. Be honest, when the pandemic changed life 11 weeks ago, did you think we'd still be in the thick of navigating it at the end of May? Today, we look at how recovery efforts could shape up this summer, and what to do if that recovery is taking longer than initially forecast. |
|
|
Mikel Blair’s business vanished in two hours. On March 7, a Saturday, she had 25 birthday parties scheduled for the weekend at her indoor playground, Badlands in Rockville, Md. By noon she closed the doors . The majority of business owners like Ms. Blair figured the shutdown wouldn't last long. But that optimism was misplaced. After reviewing Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan’s May 11 "Roadmap to Recovery" guidelines for the near term, Ms. Blair determined she won’t be able to reopen until 2021. The job market's long road to recovery has led to a blizzard of frustration, and plenty of questions about work, and about life. "The Journal" podcast this week looked at two important questions this prolonged lockdown presents: What happens when millions stop paying credit cards? And, is America ready to vote during a pandemic? Another head scratcher of most importance for business is the Trump administration's rules for forgiving loans to help small businesses survive the coronavirus outbreak. Updated guidelines -- issued Friday by Treasury and the SBA -- don’t address some stickier issues plaguing lenders and borrowers. But they do provide clarification on how to calculate payroll and non-payroll costs to fill out forgiveness documents. Those reopening or going back to work need facts after months of speculation. The Journal's guide to symptoms and protection takes a fresh look at treatments, testing and prevention, and who remains most at-risk. Stories of those planning for an extended period of warped reality are instructive. Lisa Blatt, an attorney who has argued 40 cases before the Supreme Court, created a protocol for virtual arguments made from her dining room (hide the dogs). Geoff Levenberg, meanwhile, is in the enviable position of managing rapid growth in a floral business overtaken by orders for arrangements from those not able to attend funerals (be careful where you advertise). — John D. Stoll, Business Columnist, WSJ What would you like to see covered in next week's Making it Work? Reach me at john.stoll@wsj.com or on Twitter @johndstoll, or reach my co-author Vanessa at vanessa.fuhrmans@wsj.com or on Twitter @vjfuhrmans. |
|
|
Style consultant: Face it, most of us like getting dressed up and letting clothes tell people about who we are. Eleven experts weigh in on the death of sweatpants, the right raincoats, and the need for an optimistic white suit. |
|
|
A whole new gig: Kylie Scott Degnan left social work to pursue filmmaking as the pandemic hit. She also made hilarious TikTok videos. The popularity of her Zoom spoofs and Trump impersonations have changed her life. |
|
|
|
|
| PHOTO: TONY DING, ASSOCIATED PRESS |
|
|
That's the seating capacity at the Big House in Ann Arbor, where the University of Michigan plays football. The college's president says games won't be played this fall unless all students are able to be back on campus for classes. He will make a call in the coming weeks on what the new school year will look like for 46,000 students. |
|
|
|
| Empty the nest: Many parents are convinced it's safe to send students back to school. Universities are more careful. Moms and dads are venting on Facebook or emailing and calling officials, pleading for or against reopening. Some threaten to defer, or not pay full tuition. |
| Help not wanted: Junior workers seeking seasonal employment are striking out -- the April unemployment rate for teens aged 16 to 19 hit 32%, a high not seen since at least 1948. As more teens hit the job market in June and July, when school is generally out, that rate typically climbs higher. |
|
|
| ...While We Still Work From Home |
|
|
| The Chin Cam: Cameras located underneath laptop screens, dubbed ‘chin cams,’ are especially unflattering for Zoom calls. Some people seek better camera angles by propping up their devices with household objects. Others are simply "chin-stroking." |
| Virtual office attire: Crocs -- maker of ugly, cushy plastic slip-ons -- is the only footwear brand among the top 30 to record sales growth. Fans say they are the perfect shoes to wear when no one can see your feet. “People are starting to think they’re cool.” |
|
|
|
|
"This is a golden time to be as generous as you can because people are in need. And the best way to make a friend for life is to be there in a time of crisis." | — Jim McKelvey, co-founder of Square Inc, on why now is the right time to start a business. He talked to WSJ about his new book and how to thrive in a recession. |
|
|
|
|
| Glenn Moots looks out on his backyard from his dining room. His home was destroyed when a historic flood overtook two nearby dams. PHOTO: NICK HAGEN |
|
|
A season of gratitude: It's hard to be thankful when jobs or dreams are taken from us. We've seen millions of lives disrupted by the coronavirus, and, as a New York Times headline said this morning, U.S. deaths are nearing 100,000 in an incalculable loss. My reporting this week took me to crises far removed from society's collective struggle with Covid-19. On Wednesday, I drove to Sanford, Mich., to visit the home of Glenn Moots. He is a 50-year-old professor who lost his single-story home to historic flooding. His family of four will spend Memorial Day Weekend digging out and trying to salvage memories and necessities from the wreckage that six feet of rushing water left behind. Mr. Moots reminded me several times to be grateful for what I have. He more than once said how thankful he was to have his family, faith and friends at the most difficult of times. I took a break from talking with Mr. Moots to conduct a 90-minute phone call with Aaron Marshall, a 44-year-old CEO who is still running his company six months after a stage 4 colon cancer diagnosis. His story is a reminder there is no playbook for managing through personal crises. "You have to face it," he told me. He's become a more empathetic and empowering boss. There is much to learn from those who managed while enduring circumstances outside of their control. Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg's 2016 commencement speech at Berkeley and Sleep Number CEO Shelly Ibach's Thrive Global article show how gratitude is valuable for those who have lost someone or something dear. The week ahead can be one of extending a hand or appreciating what you have. Help your parents with their finances. Dance with your children while they're still at home. Read together one of these books to remind you that hardships are best endured together. |
|
|